Tag: hilarion

Note: Watch for a special announcement soon in regard to private consultations with me later this month.
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Dear Friends, Clients, and Subscribers,

I have been working on this article for some weeks now. Obviously we have already entered into 2018 with a flurry of new Donald Trump media-grabbing news. The excerpts from the book: ‘Fire and Fury,’ do seem to confirm many of the observations I made in my lectures now posted on YouTube about him and his Astrological make-up.

What I can note here is that there was a Mars/Jupiter conjunction in Scorpio operative during the weekend that those secret revelations hit the news. Scorpio is secret, hidden emotions, Mars is will and aggressivity, and Jupiter is enthusiastic expansion of your belief system.

It was moving into a square to the Mars in Leo/Leo Ascendant of President Donald Trump. The Leo Ascendant being the pride and arrogance tendencies afforded to someone to compensate for insecurity in previous lives. The Mars in Leo conjuncting that Ascendant is his mode of response whenever that hidden insecurity is attacked, basically to ‘hit ‘em back ten times harder.’

The approaching Jupiter Square to that Leo Ascendant will be exact on November 8th. The Midterm elections are on November 6th. hmm….

I will be following this article with additional newsletters about the impending effects of all of this upon the U.S. Astrological chart and the Astrological chart of Donald Trump in the year ahead.

In the meantime, I hope you enjoy what I have written here, which has a bit more of a global perspective of what is happening in 2018.

2018 – An Astrological View

There are some major Astrological shifts occurring this year which will definitely change the flavor of the times we are evolving through. These major shifts, however, feel like a ‘prelude’ or a ‘setting the stage’ for the major alignment of Jupiter, Saturn and Pluto in Capricorn in 2020.

Astrologers have already started to predict that in the future they we will look back and refer to Earth history in terms of before and after 2020. Suffice it to say, there is likely to be a major transformation of the basic structures of global society at that time.

For example, the last time there was a major line-up in Capricorn similar to this was in 1989 at the time of the collapse of the Berlin Wall, and subsequently the Soviet Bloc and the end of the Cold War.

How we prepare ourselves and our societies in the two years leading to 2020 will determine how well prepared we will be for the transformations of 2020. Basically it will determine to what degree we can enter into that period gracefully and to what degree we will have to enter into it ‘kicking and screaming.’

I will, no doubt, be talking about the specifics of 2020 in future articles. To give it a brief description, it feels like the death of the old Patriarchal order of things as we enter the Aquarian Age, Aquarius being the sign following Capricorn into which Pluto will enter in 2024 for the first time in 247 years.

In looking at 2018 we can see that one of the significant trends shifting in 2018 actually took place on December 19, 2017, the day the Republicans signed their tax bill in the Senate. On that very day Saturn moved into Capricorn where it will remain, except for a few months of retrograde, until December of 2020.

Pluto has already entered Capricorn, back in 2008, providing the deep unconscious awareness that the way in which we live materially (financial and otherwise) must go through a major death/rebirth. This has already been spreading through the unconscious psyche of the entire planet, especially as a result of the financial crisis of 2008, but also from the threats of Global Warming, the greater and greater extremes of wealth inequality etc.

Saturn, however, is the planet that binds energy into form. It makes things ‘real.’ When Saturn conjuncts Pluto in Capricorn in 2020 the deep Plutonian unconscious awareness of needed/impending transformations will somehow become ‘real.’

Now, watching what happens when a planet first enters a new sign often provides us with a symbolic omen of the impending journey of that planet though that particular sign

For example, on the day that Uranus entered Aries (beginning a 7 year period) was the day that the Fukushima Nuclear Reactor accident in Japan took place. Aries is a fire sign and has lots of energy. Controlling it can be a challenge. Uranus is the surprise, out of the blue, uncontrollable lightning bolt of change.

The early part of this decade has been largely influenced by seven squares between Uranus in Aries and Pluto in Capricorn. Those of you who have been reading my newsletters for some time may be tired of hearing about it. Suffice it to say it is relatable to all of the surprise (Uranus) transformations or efforts of transformation (Pluto) of old structures, hence the ‘Arab Spring,’ ‘Brexit,’ and the host of the TV show ‘The Apprentice’ now being President of the United States of America.

The fact that the Republicans passed their tax bill on the day of Saturn’s entry into Capricorn does seem to bear the quality of an omen, whether you believe that it will stimulate the economy and create jobs, or it simply will benefit the wealthy and balloon the National Debt, I think it is serving as a potent image for what we will be facing in 2020, a serious restructuring in a ‘real’ way of economic structures.

The collective response to that Republican bill in the two years ahead will have a lot to do in determining the ultimate fate in 2020. Obviously, 2020 will be a hell of a year for a Presidential election.

Capricorn, however, is ambitious and self-reliant and responsible and can be used in a powerful determined way in the service of compassion as well as greed, by the political Left as well as the Right.

Saturn rules Capricorn and it is actually about the only largely good place to have Saturn. When I get to interpreting Saturn in someone’s chart I usually preface it by saying ‘Unfortunately everyone has Saturn somewhere.’

Here is what Hilarion* says about Saturn in Capricorn:

Capricorn
In Capricorn, Saturn is in its own sign, and is therefore very strongly placed. In general, all of the positive Saturnian traits will tend to be present, and some of the negative ones depending upon the degree of affliction. The positive traits are those of seriousness, stability, caution, an instinct to seek safe positions, ambition and a strong ability to do well in the world’s terms, i.e. worldly Success. The negative traits are emotional coldness, an over-emphasis on worldly success, hyper-punctuality. The matter of aspects must be carefully judged as the absence of negative aspects will mean that none of the Saturn-in-Capricorn lessons are slated for the life being lived.

Personally I plan to use this Saturn energy to finish at least one of my not yet completed books as well as to ‘concretize’ (A good Saturnian term) some of my other visions and ventures.

But this is what Hilarion says about Saturn/Pluto aspects in general in a natal chart:

Saturn aspects to Pluto are not well understood by present-day astrologers, as these contacts are essentially in the unconscious sphere and only periodically surface into the conscious ego or into the surrounding life-pattern. The meaning of a Saturn/Pluto contact is that of an extremely far-reaching change being required in the individual in this life. It is a change that affects the unconscious sphere deeply. In some manner an attitude, outlook, way of thinking or approach to some area of the life experience must undergo a radical alteration, one which in almost every case will be forced upon the individual by events or circumstances beyond his control. The signs and houses holding the two planets will give an idea of the change that is required. Pluto will usually point to the general area, while Saturn will describe the means by which the change must come.

The last time Pluto was in hard aspect to Saturn was at the time of 9/11, another time where we could talk about history before and after that date.

So this is what we have happening as we approach 2020. One way or another it should give us some 20/20 vision.

There is another approaching Astrological ‘weather pattern’ this year which is also likely to bear upon the financial/political/security themes of our lives. That is the entry of Uranus into Taurus in May of this year, where it will remain, with a brief period of retrograde, for about 7 years. Taurus is also, along with Capricorn, an Earth sign. Taurus is the sign for which the question really is: ‘Are you going to choose the Love or the Money?’

Hilarion says that someone who is born with the Sun in Taurus is someone who has developed a quality of Love at a very high level in previous lives (they are ruled by Venus). Their challenge in this life is to be able to give that love unconditionally. If they have difficulty giving that love it may instead turn back towards themselves, focusing on their senses, or an over-valuing of money, possessions and material security.

So, what results will come from Uranus being in Taurus? Well if we look back in history as to what happened when Uranus was in Taurus before we can see that it was there from 1850 to 1859. This was the beginning of a new phase of the ‘Industrial Revolution.’ In fact, in 1851 we had Uranus, Saturn and Pluto all in Taurus.

Uranus rules technology and there were major technological discoveries in those years, allowing an unprecedented transformation of material existence at that time, and we could expect some similar developments in our current world.

This Industrial Revolution, however, also allowed the accumulation of unprecedented personal wealth, and with that, tremendous political power by certain individuals. In fact, at the end of this period, in February 1859, with Uranus in the very last degree of Taurus, was the first usage of the term: ‘Robber Baron.’

The metaphor appeared as early as February 9, 1859, when The New York Times used it to characterize the unethical business practices by Cornelius Vanderbilt. Historian T.J. Stiles says the metaphor, “conjures up visions of titanic monopolists who crushed competitors, rigged markets, and corrupted government. In their greed and power, legend has it, they held sway over a helpless democracy.”[2] Charles R. Geisst says, “in a Darwinist age, Vanderbilt developed a reputation as a plunderer who took no prisoners.”[3] Hal Bridges said that the term represented the idea that “business leaders in the United States from about 1865 to 1900 were, on the whole, a set of avaricious rascals who habitually cheated and robbed investors and consumers, corrupted government, fought ruthlessly among themselves, and in general carried on predatory activities comparable to those of the robber barons of medieval Europe.”[4]
The term combines the pejorative senses of criminal (“robber”) and aristocrat (“barons” having no legitimate role in a republic). Hostile cartoonists might dress the offenders in royal garb to underscore the offense against democracy.[5]

Saturn was also squaring Pluto at that same time, their first hard aspect to each other since 1851.

The next period we had of Uranus in Taurus was 1934- 1941, the period of the Great Depression. The depression started earlier, during the shocking Uranus in Aries period. The reason the Great Depression was later called the ‘Great Depression’ was because it lasted so long, awareness of which really came to bear during the period of Uranus in Taurus. This created a hunger for and acceptance of radical change in relation to financial economics. It brought Franklin Deleanor Roosevelt to the Presidency and his economic policies called the ‘New Deal’ (very Uranus in Taurus) and brought into being things like Social Security, Child Labor Laws, and Federal Insurance for our bank deposits.

1934-1941 also brought Adolf Hitler to power as he promised, and succeeded, in transforming the German economy. Uranus promises freedom from old patterns, but we can be impulsive as to what price we are willing to pay for that new freedom.

Of course all of this year’s Astrological movements will have its own specific effects on the Astrological Chart of the U.S., your own nation’s Astrological chart, and Donald Trump’s, chart. As I said earlier, I will be writing other articles about the possible effects of this Astrological weather on the U.S. and Donald Trump.

The other sign change of a slower moving planet in 2018 will be Jupiter moving out of Scorpio into its own sign of Sagittarius in November.

We just had two and a half years of Saturn in Sagittarius, which I think has put a serious heavy weight upon our optimistic enthusiasm towards our beliefs and aspirations.

Jupiter moving into Sagittarius right after the Mid-term elections I think will be relatable to whatever enthusiastic ‘rebound’ the Democrats will be feeling from the results of the election.

In fact, Uranus dips back for a few months into Aries, that sign of fiery willful energy, on the day of the election.

Additionally, aside from the usual run of Solar and Lunar Eclipses, there will be some nice harmonizing sextiles between Jupiter in Scorpio and Pluto in Capricorn, on January 15, April 14, and September 12.

I see this as a positive, expansive, Jupiterian enthusiasm willing to dig up secret, hidden, Scorpionic passions and desires, or the abuse thereof, (which we have already been witnessing since Jupiter entered Scorpio in November), but now working with profound Plutonian transformation of old, entrenched Capricornian structures and traditions. Kind of like Oprah Winfry’s speech the other night at the Golden Globe awards, followed by calls for her to run for President.

Jupiter will also start to harmoniously trine Neptune in August, so some of those aspirational prayers may actually be answered.

The outer planets spend a lot of time retrograde, going backwards, this year, so I don’t feel this year will see any really dramatic changes on the global scene.

That being said, the eclipses on July 12 and 28 involve hard aspects to Pluto and Uranus, which could add greatly to the intensity and sudden changeable quality of those events.

As far as how all of this may be affecting your own individual chart, as I said in my note at the beginning, soon I will be making a special announcement, which may interest you.

In the mean time, let us try to remember to choose the love and the faith.

As I am about to write this article I have just come out of a Global Meditation event, staged to help heal the recent energies of trauma created in Las Vegas.

This included helping the souls of those who have had to transition out of their bodies in such an intense, shocking, violent way. And yes, even trying to help the twisted, tortured tragic soul who has created such a hellish experience for himself and others.

I am actually in China right now, so I am looking at this with some distance. From here, however, I can feel the incredulous view of the U.S. the rest of the world holds right now. A view of our repeating on-going traumas of gun related mass shootings, to a President who threatens to destroy another nation before a General Assembly of all of the nations of the world.

Our nation seems to be spinning crazily out of control with violent energies. Hopefully something can be learned from this.

If we look at what is happening to the Astrology chart of the U.S. right now we can see collective lessons we are all being faced with in the community of our nation, and the opportunity to grow from it.

And if we look at the Astrological karma of the shooter, Stephen Paddock, we can also benefit from understanding the implicit in-born energies he was born with and the impending Astrological energies which were coming to bear upon him. From this we can also understand and learn. (His Solar Chart: no birth time or surety about birthplace)

I was initially going to stay in the comfort of my relative distance from the details of this event. But then as I listened to the news on the English language TV station here they announced Stephen Paddock’s birthdate and I got ‘sucked in.’

I knew immediately that Pluto was moving right now into a square to his Sun in Aries. Someone who is Aries, according to Hilarion*, is someone who, in some previous life, risked their own life to come to the rescue of another individual. As a reward for that courageous act they are given an additional energy, physically, mentally or emotionally.

Their challenge is to be able to express this energy in such a way that it does not harm themselves or others through aggressive, violent behavior.

Pluto squaring the Sun is, in any regard, a time when you have to look deep within yourself. A time to see where are you really coming from. Is it from love or is it from fear?

One author described it this way:

Pluto square Sun transit means you are in for a test of your character for a couple of years. The Sun represents your sense of self, your authority and power. The challenging square aspect from Pluto brings extreme forces in the form of other people and circumstances which mean you have to stand up and be counted.

This can be a time of crisis or breakdown as Pluto totally transforms your ego, identity and life direction. Pluto is basically throwing down a challenge so that you master your own personal power. Pluto can be ruthless in its effect so it can make you ruthless in achieving your goals. Power conflicts are common with this transit and these can be not only with authority figures like the law and bosses, but also in personal relationships. (Astrologyking.com)

And I would say as well that when Pluto squares your Sun, if you have not really been owning the energies of your Sun, of your soul essence, who you really are, then Pluto will force you to, one way or another.

Of course there are numerous other Astrological factors at play here in this man’s chart, too numerous for me to want to devote all of the time and energy it would take to elucidate them all.

To briefly hit the main points, however:

Most people know by now that Stephen Paddock’s father was a criminal on the FBI’s top 10 most wanted list. His father, Benjamin Paddock, was in prison for the first three years of his oldest son, Stephen’s, life.

When Stephen was 7 (the time of Saturn squaring his natal Saturn) his father was arrested for a string of bank robberies. The neighbor took Stephen swimming while the BFI searched their house. The neighbor later stated to the newspaper: “We’re trying to keep Steve from knowing his father is held as a bank robber. I hardly know the family, but Steve is a nice boy. It’s a terrible thing.”

When Stephen Paddock was 15, around the time of Saturn opposing his natal Saturn, his father escaped prison and an FBI poster appeared stating that his father had been diagnosed as psychopathic. That has got to be rather intense for a hormonally-charged teenage Aries boy.

In Stephen Paddock’s natal chart, however, he has an Aquarius Moon opposite to Pluto. This is relatable to the apparent attempt to maintain some cool, detached, airy, Aquarian mental atmosphere in his childhood in order to avoid the deep, dark, hidden intense Plutonian reality of the man who, in part, led to his creation in this life. This is how Hilarion describes the affect of this afflicted Aquarian Moon:

The more afflicted the Moon, the more one will find a sense of emotional control and suppression, even coldness, at the heart level…. there tends to be taken from the early home situation a trait of self-control at the emotional level, a dislike of emotional display or extremes, which can produce a difficulty in the individual’s own later home/marriage pattern, particularly if he becomes involved, as he usually does, with someone who requires more in the way of emotional responsiveness than the Aquarian Moon is prepared to give.

That opposing Plutonian reality to that cool detached afflicted Aquarian Moon never went away from the dynamics and reality of his own unconscious psyche.

And those Saturn transits hitting his own Saturn at 7 and 14? Well his natal Saturn was conjunct Neptune and they are both, Neptune and Saturn, opposite to his Sun in Aries.

The Sun, in Psychological Astrology, represents the Father/Male principle in a chart. Saturn difficultly aspecting the Sun creates a likely restrictive energy involving the relationship with the father. Neptune difficultly aspected to the Sun will create some likely illusion, confusion, delusion, and/or victimhood involving one’s relationship with the father. (For example: Barack Obama has a Sun square Neptune, fatherhood experience in his own childhood.)

Stephen Paddock’s Aries Sun was also square to Uranus, thereby creating a sense of the father that would involve sudden ruptures, and a perhaps crazy unconventionality.

Now early in his life Stephen Paddock chose to be an accountant. Not too exciting, intense or aggressive. More like his cool detached Aquarian Moon and some other factors in his chart.

He worked, however, for a company that became Lockheed Martin, a major military defense contractor. I remember when I happened to be visiting Littleton, Colorado, where the Columbine High School mass shooting took place; I discovered that, although it seemed like a rather idyllic peaceful suburban town, most of the parents in that town worked for Lockheed Martin….

Stephen Paddock’s father, Benjamin, liked to gamble and while he was a fugitive he tried once to run down an FBI agent with his car in, Las Vegas….

So, we have Stephen Paddock, a former accountant moving recently to Las Vegas, gambling sometimes $10,000 up to $30,000 in a day, and starting to collect guns while Pluto was in a period of opposing his Uranus, squaring his Sun and moving into a square to his Neptune and his Saturn. Clearly he was trying to somehow embrace the denied, unintegrated intense reality of his father’s presence in his psyche.

Stephen Paddock really needed deep therapy, intensive meditation or Ayahuasca ceremonies to help him with this. Instead, as Pluto started to hit all of this he chose the violent, explosive Aries way of ‘acting it out.’

If Stephen Paddock had lived in a country where citizens have limited or no access to firearms he may have acted out through some explosive fight with his boss or guys in a bar.

In full disclosure, I myself own a firearm and I have killed with it. Even though I am basically a pacifist/vegetarian, I have a 22 rifle with which I once shot a packrat who had been terrorizing my house all night, every night and was uncatchable by humane ‘catch-em alive’ traps, by traps that kill, and even by poison. (He would build a ‘nest’ of twigs, pine needles and nails on top of the poison!)

I finally took out my rifle and ‘got’ him with one shot. And, I was scared to admit the primal sense of relishing that power and control wielded to me by that weapon, temporarily superseding my compassion for that poor creature.

It does enable me to imagine the potential effect of the force of being in possession of a stockpile of weapons and ammunition with some of those weapons made to be fully automatic upon someone with a dissociated, unstable psyche.

On a lighter note, it does remind me of a comedy routine by the British comedian Eddie Izzard where he repeated the often-repeated statement: ‘Guns don’t kill people. People do.’ To which Eddie replied in that enunciated way that the Brits do so well: ‘Well, I think guns have something to do with it. You can’t just point your fingers and go: bang, bang, bang, bang you’re all dead!’

And for those 2nd Amendment people who always say: ‘Well, if someone in the school was ‘packing heat’ this never would have happened.’ Well, in Las Vegas, in a state with both concealed and open-carry weapon laws, the shooter made sure that he had a distance, and a vantage point, and firepower such that all of those likely handguns in the crowd would be totally useless.

It seems that we are possibly heading towards a nation with metal detectors at all large hotels, public buildings, schools and transportation hubs.

Neptune, up in the sky right now, is squaring the Sagittarian Rising/Ascendant of the United States this year. Sagittarius Rising makes it such that you see yourself as, as Hilarion* says: ‘honest, upright and morally strong, whether true or not.’

Neptune impinging that Sagittarian self-image is creating some ‘illusion, confusion, delusion, and victimhood’ challenges in relation to that normally self-righteous self-image. So I think there is some unease with prior convictions, or an added sense of vulnerability in the way we see ourselves, like the potential for Nuclear War.

The potential benefit of this aspect is to dis-identify with those previously held convictions in order to view them with a non-ego-identified perspective.

Just because an Astrological transit creates this opportunity, however, does not promise that one will benefit from it. There is always going to be resistance, a pushback.

For example, we have ex-Fox TV host Bill O’Reilly posting on his blog in the aftermath of this massacre: “This is the price of freedom.”

There have been many responses, such as this one: “No Bill O’Reilly. Listening to you is the (high) price of freedom. Gun massacres are the price of weak gun laws.”

One last, I feel, poignant Astrological Note:

Stephen Paddock’s Moon was in the 25th degree of Aquarius. The Moon of the U.S.A. is in the 28th degree of Aquarius. The Moon at the moment of the attack Sunday night was in the 26th degree of Aquarius.

The Great American Eclipse was at the 29th degree of Leo, within four degrees of exact opposition to the Moons of Stephen Paddock, the USA, and the Las Vegas Massacre.

Now the US Aquarian Moon has only a positive aspect to it natally and I relate that to the positive Aquarian ideals of freedom and equality the nation was founded upon. And it is unfortunate, but tragedy like this does have the potential to bring us all together as one suffering human family.

The Leo potentially oppositional arrogance to that brother/sisterhood Aquarian potential is, however, evidenced by the previously quoted comment by Bill O’Reilly.

In the spirit of my Libran fairness, however, this arrogance was also evident in the comments of a CBS vice president who was fired after she posted on her Facebook page:

“If they wouldn’t do anything when children were murdered I have no hope that Repugs [sic] will ever do the right thing,” Geftman-Gold continued: “I’m actually not even sympathetic bc [sic] country music fans often are Republican gun toters [sic].”

She has since heartily apologized but of course is now facing numerous death threats.

As I say at my lectures, the self-righteous Sagittarian Rising energies of the U.S. are not limited to the Right Wing. We all have a tendency to be rather obnoxious. It is one reason I really enjoy spending a fair bit of time outside of our country.

I would like to end this article with some wisdom from Hilarion. These are his statements about the nature and experience of karma and reincarnation quoted from his book: ‘Nations’ (which is available as an EBook on Amazon.com).

Blessings,
Steffan Vanel

PS: Even though I am in China right now, I’m not too busy work-wise and would be happy to do Skype readings for anyone who would like that. I can also make free phone calls to the U.S.

From the Introduction by Hilarion to NATIONS

For these things are not governed by chance.

Many imagine that pure hazard decrees where one shall be born, and then they blame an unjust God for His cruelty. Others are so appalled by the suffering that they retreat into apathy. Yet others – often prompted by murky religious concepts – think that some sort of ‘plan’ is being worked out, but are not able to explain that plan in a satisfactory manner.

The key that is missing – the link that can unite all of the apparent chaos and suffering into a just and plausible scheme – is the concept that each individual born into the earth is merely taking on a new physical body (one of many) and that his habits and actions in previous bodies have determined the opportunities and the hardships which are his now.

It is deplorable that the main western religions have turned their backs upon this truth – a truth which was part of the credo of most early Christian writers until the Council of Nicea voted to erase all scriptural reference to reincarnation. (Even so, they did not dare to tamper with Jesus’ own statement that John the Baptist was the reincarnation of Elias – Matthew 11:14 and Mark 9:11-13.)

What we are saying is that a proper grasp of the principle of rebirth – and the related principle of karma – not only makes reality understandable, but shows God to be just. We see in the near future a great excitement among humanity as the truth of reincarnation gradually spreads among all peoples. Indeed, numerous individuals already acknowledge this principle without even admitting it to themselves. How many have said, in a moment of exasperation, “What did I ever do to deserve this?” Were they not stating the very law of karma upon which cosmic justice rests? It is the same law which Christ was evoking when He said that those who live by the sword must die by the sword. If this statement were taken to refer only to a single life, it would be manifestly untrue – for have not many murderers died peacefully in their beds? Yet, seen in the light of the rebirth principle, the dictum makes far more sense. It asserts that justice shall follow the murderer even if it does not work itself out in the same life in which the misdeed was committed. In some incarnation, now or later, he himself must ‘die by the sword’.

An interesting facet of this karmic principle is its great effectiveness in teaching humanity to have compassion. Let us explain this point more fully.

Everyone is generally aware of the fact that, in ages past, human beings tended to be very calloused and unfeeling towards each other. At the time of Jesus, for example, there was little respect for human life, hardly any consideration for the suffering of another, and absolutely no feeling of any kind for the animals. Children were regularly beaten, tied up, even hung on the wall to keep them out of an adult’s way. A soldier would think nothing of running his sword through a passing stranger, merely to determine whether the cutting edge were still sharp.

These inhuman attitudes persist even today in many of the darkened places of the earth. And yet, particularly in the western democratic nations, one finds many individuals who are polite and considerate, and who feel it deeply when others around them are suffering. This is the essence of compassion. The word literally means ‘to suffer with’ another. This trait has also been called empathy.

It might surprise the earth’s compassionate individuals to learn that their empathetic nature arises because of their own previous suffering! In effect, what happens when one perceives another person in pain is the rekindling of a memory of one’s own previous painful episodes – whether in this life or in a previous one. Hence what one feels initially is a memory-pain which is evoked by the suffering of the other person.

Some individuals merely feel the empathy – they ‘suffer with’ the person who is undergoing the pain. But others are prompted by their own pain-memories to try to relieve the suffering. Initially the person may do this because by relieving the suffering in the other, the source of his own pain-memory will be removed. But repeated episodes of such help will gradually become ingrained into the individual as a habit of compassionate kindness, and the result will eventually be to incorporate that wonderful trait into the soul itself.

It is thus that the karmic necessity to suffer the same pain we have caused others brings with it ‘an automatic antidote to the kind of attitude that gives rise to the karma in the first place. Think of it as a progression: in the primitive stage, the soul is darkened, insular and lacking in empathy; a life is lived during which pain is caused to others through violent actions. In subsequent lives, the soul inhabits bodies which are made to suffer the same pain which the soul once meted out to others. As a result of that karmic ‘meeting of the self’, the soul stores pain-memories which can be evoked by witnessing similar suffering. Finally, the soul has become so sensitized by pain that it reacts immediately to any scenario in which another is seen to be suffering. At first the soul is simply overcome with ‘com-passion’, i.e. it ‘suffers with’ the other. Perhaps the soul will wish to leave the presence of the sufferer in order to stop its own pain-memories. But at a more mature point, the soul learns to reach out a helping hand to relieve the suffering.

Today was the funeral for Muhammad Ali and I thought I would do some research and share some observations with you.

I grew up knowing about Cassius Clay, who later became Muhammad Ali. He was kind of an outrageous character at a time when there were few outrageous characters in the U.S., of any race. To be so outspoken, so proud, so out-front arrogant was pretty amazing in those days.

He refused to go to Vietnam when I was only 15 in 1966. I was just beginning to become a hippy, just starting to feel the winds of protest. In 1966, refusing to go to Vietnam was still pretty radical.

I was never into boxing and I am not an African American, so his influence on me was more at a distance. As I became more and more radicalized myself, however, I came to admire Muhammad Ali, along with anyone with the courage to ‘buck the system.’

I have also noticed in the Astrology charts of those a fair bit older than me (I’m born in 1951), but nonetheless opened to the unconventional energies of the 60’s, that they often have really dynamic outer planet aspects in their charts. In my view, they needed that in order to break free from the conventional programming they grew up with, whereas through my own early life experiences I can say that I stopped believing in the ‘straight’ conventional world when I was quite young.

Muhammad Ali definitely had a lot of dynamic outer planet aspects, especially with Uranus and Pluto, about which Astrologer Alan Oken once said: “With Pluto it is: Change or die!, to which Uranus says: Yeah right!”

I am not going to write a really lengthy detailed analysis of Muhammad Ali’s chart, but I did want to share a few key Hilarion* insights that give some perspective into what made this man ‘tick.’

He was a Capricorn and you can definitely feel that he had that dedicated, self-reliant, material ambition of Capricorn. He told his friend when he was a young child that he knew he was going to be really successful and was going to buy himself and his momma a big house.

As an Astrologer, however, when one contemplated the character and behavior of Muhammad Ali you knew there had to be some Leo energy in there somewhere. Well sure enough, I have yet another name to add to my list of George W. Bush, Sarah Palin, Prince Charles, Al Gore and, more recently, Donald Trump. They all have Leo Rising.

For those of you who don’t remember what Hilarion says about Leo Rising, which I shared last in the Donald Trump article, here it is again:

Leo When the sign Leo rises, there will be a tendency for the self-picture to be colored by the notions of elegance, specialness and superiority. A proudness will often be felt internally, even though it usually does not manifest. The reason for giving this Ascendant to an individual is to prompt him to think better of himself than he is in the habit of doing when in incarnation. The rulership by the Sun thus lends to the individual certain bolstering influences in terms of how he sees himself, which are intended to teach him not to underestimate his own worth and not to feel inferior to others. In view of this explanation, it will be understood that those with Leo rising will often find that they are torn between thinking little and thinking a lot of themselves. Through the experience of this inner battle, it is hoped that they will ultimately learn that each person is complete and worthy in his own right, and that none are either superior or inferior.

So often it seems that Leo Rising people are more Leo than Leo’s. That inner insecurity being compensated by Leonine arrogance and pride can really make them want to ‘come out fighting.’

Additionally, Ali had Mars in his 9th House square to his Sun in Capricorn, and square to Pluto in the 12th House. This is what Hilarion says about Mars in the 9th House:

Ninth House Mars in the ninth house lends an aura of strength to the moral righteousness of the individual. He is a crusader for “justice” — whether for people, animals, nature or whatever. There is little to be learned here, except to moderate the extremes of this tendency

And what Hilarion says about Pluto in the 12th House:

Twelfth House When Pluto is located in the house of the subconscious as affected by past-life experience, the meaning is basically that the most recent life was one which witnessed a number of radical changes in the soul. Its attitudes, habits and typical associations when incarnated likely went through a number of profound revisions. As a result, the present personality may be somewhat apprehensive and timid, having only recently adopted many of its present traits. Not having a long string of comparable earth personalities to back it up, the present personality will feel “out on a limb”, hesitant and uncertain. The analyst can help such an individual by explaining that many positive changes were made in the most recent life-experience, and that the present traits of the individual represent a definite step forward in the soul’s evolution.

Pluto being square to Mars indicates the likelihood of violence in that last lifetime.

The Sun in Capricorn in the 3rd corner of this tense ‘T-Square’ was in the 6th House of work, service, activity in the world.

I would say that it was this moral righteousness of Mars in the 9th, combined with the self-reliant, ambition of the Sun in Capricorn in the 6th, and the intense transformation in his last lifetime with Pluto in his 12th House, that made him really ‘fired up’ when he was a child and was refused a drink of water in a store in Louisville because he was black. It was also the desire to physically attack whoever had stolen his bicycle when he was 12 that led him to being told by a Louisville police officer and boxing coach that he better learn to box first.

Now Ali also had his Sun in Capricorn harmoniously trine to Uranus in the 10th House of ‘Role in the World.’ This made him comfortable playing an unconventional role. He also had Jupiter in the 10th House with only positive aspects, usually an indicator of ‘success in one’s career.’

The unconventional Uranus and ambitious Sun in Capricorn are also both harmoniously trined to Neptune. This became more evident as he became older, going deeper into his religion and the compassionate acts of service he was later noted for.

His role as a victim of Parkinson’s disease is perhaps relatable to the deep Plutonian undermining of his powerful Sun/Mars energies. Remember Alan Oken re: Pluto?: Change or die!

Having Parkinson’s pulled him out of the orbit of the Mars/Sun/Pluto intensity and allowed him to open more to the potential of the Neptunian compassionate service and healing.

Interesting because Aries energy figures prominently in the Astrological view of this horrific event. There were four planets in Aries at the time of the crash, with the on-going Uranus in Aries square to Pluto in Capricorn in the middle of that.

The major tension in Andreas Lubitz chart is between Jupiter in Aries and Venus in Capricorn.

And, I was told by a German Astrologer years ago that Germany was an Aries country, which does seem to fit.

Aries We have said that Aries has an abundance of energy available to it. This energy is, in effect, a kind of reward or gift to the Aries individual resulting from acts of courage in past incarnations, when thoughts of self-interest were set aside in order to come to the aid of another. In a sense, the gift is internal rather than external because the very act of courageously facing danger in order to help another person automatically taps deeply into an inexhaustible source of energy, and the soul gains a permanent link with this source of energy. But with every gift comes a responsibility. In the case of Aries, the responsibility is to learn to handle this increased energy so that it does not harm others or the self through aggressive expression and violent behaviour.

I can look at the Astrological chart for Andreas Lubitz and surmise many karmic factors which could lead him to do what he did. We know his birthdate of December 18, 1987 but his birth time on the Astro.com website has only a ‘C’ rating of reliability at this time.

Also, as Lubitz was not a public figure, we don’t have a lot of easily accessible biographical details to give insight into what was going on in his life and how those elements reflect his birthchart.

I can share a few elements that we know are accurate based on his birthdate. I will follow, however, with some of my feelings about the deeper collective message or lesson behind this event.

First of all, the Venus/Jupiter Square in Andreas Lubitz’ chart,. He had the Pluto/Uranus square approaching it, and his progressed Sun (the movement of his identity through the chart) was conjuncting the Venus and squaring the Jupiter.

Here is what Hilarion says about Venus in Capricorn:

Capricorn

Venus in this sign, when afflicted, tends to dampen the love nature with a certain coldness or distance. This may not be perceived by the individual as much as by others, due to Saturn’s (ruler of Capricorn) often subconscious influence. The main lesson is to show affection and warmth more. In positive aspect, Venus in Capricorn is dedicated, long-suffering and constant in the affections.

And here is what he says about Jupiter in Aries:

Aries

In Aries, ruled by Mars, Jupiter always instills a super-abundance of vital force and energy. In affliction, there can be difficulty in controlling and channeling this energy constructively. In positive aspect, Jupiter here shows good physical stamina, the ability to throw off illness, and a positive “conquering” attitude toward life. Obstacles are not much feared as there is the inner conviction that one can easily steam-roller most blockages in the life-pattern.

‘Difficulty in controlling and channeling this energy constructively.’ I would say so.

Having that Jupiterian ‘super-abundance of vital force’ in tension with the Venusian ‘coldness or distance’ would make it such that he would tend to identify with either the Capricorn emotionally suppressed Venus, and not really own or be comfortable with his energetic Jupiter in Aries. Or he would be the positive, upbeat Jupiter in Aries, but in denial of, or repressing, the cold, restrained Venus in Capricorn emotional energies. It has been revealed that he tried to hide his depression from others and especially the authorities at Lufthansa.

Until we heal and consciously own and integrate these tense Astrological energies within ourselves we will tend to project one end or another onto someone else in our relationships.

Apparently Andreas Lubitz had recently had a difficult break-up with his girlfriend, so that would be one factor in bringing this tension within himself to a head. With this configuration I would suspect that either she was, personality-wise, the stable , but cool, restrained Venus in Capricorn, and got tired of his overly energetic, somewhat bombastic, perhaps non-committal Jupiter in Aries.

Or, conversely, she was the Jupiter in Aries personality type and got tired of his cold, emotionally unavailable, but perhaps controlling Venus in Capricorn, always trying to limit her freedom and expansiveness.

This might well explain some of the personal emotional challenges Lubitz was dealing with. It does not, however, explain as to why he would bring down 149 people with him as he tried to escape this tension. That can only be speculated about at this point.

He did have a Pluto/Mars conjunction and the Moon, all in Scorpio, leading to deep, intense, potentially destructive hidden energies.

If we work with the chart based on the, as yet, unofficially confirmed birth time of 10:31 am, this Scorpio line-up falls in his Ninth House, the house of philosophy, travel, religion and belief system. So some dark, intense hidden beliefs could have festered there.

Andreas Lubitz also had four planets, including his Sun, in Sagittarius the sign which rules the Ninth House and a sign that can be morally righteous, open and honest, or a bit fanatical.

In the 10:31 am chart all of these Sagittarian planets and a 5th one, Neptune, fall in the Eleventh House which Hilarion has renamed the house of former enemies. Here is what Hilarion says about the Sun in the Eleventh House:

Eleventh House

The eleventh sector of a birth chart is largely misunderstood among astrologers at present. It is thought to govern friends and acquaintances, while in reality it is the house of enemies. The true house of friendship is of course the seventh, since it pertains to the one who is so close to the native that the latter is prepared to link up in some way with that person. The eleventh house, however, points to those who, in past lives, have been cast in the role of adversaries. In the present life, such former adversaries often are drawn by negative Karmic bonds into associations of one kind or another with the native, and it can happen that a friendship of a sort is struck up. However, it is wise for the individual with heavy eleventh-house influence to be mindful of the background to any of his associations which seem to be designated by eleventh-sector planets. For, knowing that such souls once were adversaries, it is possible to conduct oneself in such a way as to overcome the old frictions, and to bridge any lingering animosity with cords of true affection. For love alone is capable of dissolving the bonds of rivalry and dislike that tie together two souls at odds with each other. And the design of each person’s eleventh house is a gift for his understanding — a signpost that can help him set his feet squarely on the path to spiritual achievement, by learning to do as Christ Himself advised when He said, “Love thine enemies”.

Interestingly, the chart for the take off of the flight from Barcelona has three planets in this Eleventh House, and the chart for the crash has three planets in the Eleventh House, and….all three of these charts have the planet Uranus, the planet of accidents and sudden ruptures, in this Eleventh House of karma with former enemies.

This leads to my sense of the perhaps larger, collective message here. Those of you who have been reading my newsletters have surely noted how I always try to see the larger message behind these tragic events thrust upon the collective psyche of nations and the world.

When I first heard of a crash of a flight between Spain and Germany it immediately resonated with my awareness that there is a fair bit of tension going on between Germany and the EU nations which are in especially difficult economic straits right now. This is most obvious with Greece and their newly elected Syriza anti-austerity party, but the rise of the similarly motivated ‘Podemos’ (We can) party in Spain, which seems poised to also assume some degree of political power in Spain and take on the largely German-led imposition of austerity measures there is a similar seething tension between Spain and Germany.

Interesting to note, in the early 1950s Germany was billions of dollars in debt for which they requested leniency so as to be able to restart their economy. The debt was moved into 30-year loans to aid their recovery, as the US invested into the Marshall Plan to help Europe rebuild.

Is there something in the collective German Psyche, however, which is under attack here? It was mostly Germans on that plane but there were 49 Spaniards as well. Is there something in the collective German Psyche which is so capable of cutting off from their own emotional reality and the emotions of others that would enable them to create a death machine that murdered 12 million people under Hitler, force severe austerity measures on a struggling country like Greece with 26% unemployment (among youth 50%), or produce the likes of an Andreas Lubitz whose emotional/psychological dysfunction could lead him to destroy 149 people along with himself without being really aware or caring?

Now there are also a lot of great things I love about Germany and in my forthcoming book: ‘To Europa with Love’ I will share those things. And I certainly don’t feel that everyone in Germany is in any way capable of doing what Andreas Lubitz did.

But I also see a large dichotomy between the dark and light sides of Germany, something I will explore in greater detail in my book.

If Germany is an Aries nation, then they have had, are now having, or will soon have the Uranus/Pluto Square bearing down upon them. It seems to me that this event is some deep level ‘wake-up call’ for them on a profound psychological level.

Curiously, the flight took off from Barcelona, and the nearest town in the French Alps to the crash site is named Barcelonnette. Something seems to be afoot here.

Blessings,

Steffan Vanel

PS: My thanks to those of you who sent a donation in support of my work recently.

Spiritual Company Newsletter

It feels like a pretty potent day today with all of these elements: a New Moon with Solar Eclipse on the day of the Spring Equinox as the Sun moves into the first degree of Aries.

The first day of Aries is the real Astrological New Year’s Day, which various Astrological groups have designated as International Astrology Day, to acknowledge and support the benefit and wisdom of Astrology.

Hilarion has stated this about Astrology:

The astrological system is a direct gift from the highest Creator to mankind. It is a gift which allows him to develop at all levels simultaneously — not only at the physical level where the personality is manifest, but also at the higher mental and astral planes, and those beyond. For it is not sufficient to improve the personality only. There must be an absorption of the improvement at the higher soul level, or what has been termed the higher self.

The planetary energies alone are capable of penetrating through the human being to his higher levels. Without the planetary positions and geometries, as the planets form various angles against the different signs of the zodiac, there would not be the easy communication of lessons and improvements upwardly through the various levels of man’s vehicles to the highest point.

This is also the one time in the year that I remind people that, although my newsletters are distributed free of charge, I do appreciate donations in appreciation of the time, efforts and costs expended in producing and distributing these newsletters.

This year I thought that I would mention that I know most of you are probably a bit like myself, in that we would have an immediate tendency in this situation to assume that enough other people will surely donate such that the appropriate amount of support will arrive. Unfortunately last year after my announcement only 4 people sent in donations. So, if a few more folks could donate, even just $5 that would be great.

You can use the ‘Donate’ button or you can send a check to me at: PO Box 476, Curlew, WA 99118

I will end with another quote from Hilarion which gives some explanation as to how the Astrological System works taken from the book ‘The Nature of Reality‘:

32: Astrology

The nature of astrological influence is not understood by more than a handful of men at the present time. Astrology is an ancient system of correlation between planetary positions and movements on the one hand, and earth-events on the other hand. This correlation has continued since the beginning and will continue until the end.

Scientists find impossible to accept the notion that the planets of the solar system can have any influence on the pattern of individual lives in the sense of cause-and-effect. In this view they are entirely correct. Nonetheless the correlations between planetary events and the life-patterns of individuals do take place with a regularity and reliability far beyond the realm of pure chance or coincidence.

The way in which the correlation is produced can be understood by the use of an analogy. Let it be imagined that a party of explorers has become trapped in a valley ringed by mountains due to a landslide. There is no means of communication between those inside the valley and those outside, except by a two-way radio. The transmitter within the valley will soon be useless because its battery will become exhausted, and therefore it is desired to arrange a timing system for the airlift of food, medicine and other supplies which can be followed closely both inside and outside of the valley.

It is agreed to utilize the phases of the moon for this purpose. The arrangement involves the airlift of medical supplies at first quarter moon, of foodstuffs at full moon, of clothing at last-quarter moon, and of fuel at new moon. Even with the transmitter out of order, those inside the valley will always be able to keep track of the expected drop times by simply noting the current phase of the moon.

If it is now imagined that the group trapped in the valley consisted initially of a single adult and a number of pre-school-age children too young to have the code system explained to them, and if it is assumed that the adult is incapacitated or killed by an accident, it will be seen that the surviving children will be unable at first to judge when the next drop of supplies will take place, nor will they know what the supplies will be.

After a certain length of time has elapsed, it may be imagined that one of the children, older than the others, notices that whenever the food is dropped the moon is at its full phase. Observation over several months quickly indicates to him the code arrangement for all airlifted supplies. He might assume that the moon itself possesses some intrinsic quality or vibration which “causes” the airlifts to take place and which determines the nature of the substances dropped. This conclusion could be considered quite reasonable in view of the fact that all of the children are too young to remember clearly any life outside of the valley, and the fact that the adult had never explained the system. Nonetheless the child would be wrong in his conclusion.

The actual system of astrological correlation functions in a similar manner, but the code refers not to supplies airlifted into a mountain valley, but rather to the birth of pre-existent souls into physical incarnation.

Before each birth into the earth plane, the characteristics of the soul in terms of basic habits, traits and tendencies are already known from an examination of actions and attitudes in its previous lives. In addition, the basic pattern and plan of the life about to be lived is also determined in a general way, together with the nature of the specific karma intended to be met and set aside during the experience. Using all of this preliminary information, a particular planetary pattern is selected which will best represent this information in coded form to any competent astrologer who erects the astrological chart, and the timing of the “first breath” of the new life is manipulated and adjusted so that it falls as close as possible to a point of time which will yield this best chart.

The actual procedure is somewhat more complex than that just described, but the analogy given above will allow a good understanding of the reasons why astrology appears to “work” as reliably as it does.